The euro was also under pressure, trading 0.1 percent lower at $1.2650, near four-month lows.

Events in Europe and in Asia, where Japan reported that its trade deficit continues to widen, overshadowed encouraging news from the U.S. housing market.

Toll Brothers Inc., the homebuilder based in Pennsylvania, returned to a second-quarter profit.

Home deliveries at Toll Brothers climbed to 671 units from 591 units, while net signed contracts increased to 1,290 units from 879 units. Backlog rose to 2,403 units from 1,760 units.

Toll’s executive chairman, Robert Toll, said that in some locations, it’s no longer a buyer’s market and in a few places, it’s even a seller’s market.

“’’We would like to say ‘We’re back’, but we need a little more confirmation,” Toll said. “Nonetheless, it sure feels good, compared to the desert we’ve just crossed.”

The earnings report came just hours before the Commerce Department releases its latest figures on new home sales.

Economists forecast that sales rose 2.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 335,000 units last month, according to a survey by FactSet. Builder confidence has been rising since the fall, but sales remain at less than half the 700,000 annual rate that would signal a healthy market.

The Commerce Department releases its report at 10 a.m. Eastern.

Also today, after a tumultuous two days, shares of Facebook Inc. appear to have stabilized. The stock is up 2 percent to $31.70 in premarket trading, but they’re still well off the $38 offering price from Friday after a massive, two-day sell-off.